Remote conference systems realize situations similar to actual conferences as follows. Images and sounds are collected by imaging attendees and collecting utterances of the attendees in conference rooms where remote conferences are held. The collected images and sounds are converted into digital data and transmitted by transmission terminals on one side to other transmission terminals on the other parties' side. The images are displayed on displays such as video screens and the sounds are output from speakers in conference rooms on the other parties' side.
In an example of such remote conference systems, a remote conference can be realized among a plurality of sites by a relaying apparatus that is coupled to all of the transmission terminals attending the conference and controls delivery of image data and sound data to each transmission terminal.
Generally, in a remote conference held among sites, a display screen of the transmission terminal is divided into the number of transmission terminals attending the conference and images transmitted from other transmission terminals are displayed in the divided areas on the display screen so as to know who is attending the conference through other transmission terminals during the conference (e.g., refer to Japanese Patent No. 3308563).
Such a conventional technique, however, has a problem in that users who use the respective transmission terminals cannot grasp which transmission terminal is attending the conference when the number of transmission terminals attending the conference increases because the division number of the display screen is increased and thus a display area for displaying an image transmitted from each transmission terminal is reduced.
Therefore, there is a need for a transmission management apparatus that enables users who use respective transmission terminals to grasp which transmission terminal is attending a conference regardless of the number of transmission terminals attending the conference.